Student Health Plans Boost Coverage and Price

Expanded benefits include prescriptions and preventive care

Under the Affordable Care Act, the minimum annual benefits limit of such plans will jump to $500,000 for the 2013-14 school year, up from $100,000 in 2012-13. And the cap will disappear for the 2014-15 school year.

Also starting next year, student plans can't exempt pre-existing conditions and will be expected to cover the same 10 essential benefits as other individual health plans, including prescription drugs, preventative services and mental-health care.

But the plans cost more, too. Most students still stay on a parent's plan, with about 20% to 30% choosing a university health plan. Employer plans also are becoming more expensive, however, reflecting higher premiums, steeper deductibles or both. A few things to consider:

•Cost. Some employers charge an additional amount for each dependent on an insurance plan, which means some parents could save money by enrolling their child in a student plan.

Aetna, the largest provider of student health insurance, says its average plan costs about $1,800 a year, or about $150 a month.

Next year, when most people will be required to have coverage or pay a penalty, student policies are likely to be cheaper than buying individual insurance through a health-care exchange.

ENLARGE

• Coverage. Parents should be sure their own plans are portable. Some parent plans offer coverage only within a certain region or state and might offer only urgent or emergency care to a student attending school out of state.

While a student health plan should cover basic benefits, there could be exceptions.

•Deductibles. Since deductibles on parents' plans can vary widely, families should weigh the financial impact of an emergency or health crisis. Deductibles for student plans generally are $200 to $300.

—Karen Blumenthal The Wall Street Journal

No Contract

AT&T will begin offering wireless customers the option to forgo contracts and get more frequent upgrades if they pay full price for their smartphones.

The company is beginning a program July 26 for subscribers to buy their phones using a monthly financing plan that will add payments to their monthly bills. After a year, they will be allowed to upgrade the device. Under the new option, called AT&T Next, there are no service contracts other than the financing commitment. It is available for tablets as well.

—Thomas Gryta The Wall Street Journal

Cheaper Tablet

Microsoft has cut the price of its Surface RT tablet by $150, or up to 30%. The software company's websites show a price of $349 for the least-expensive model, without a cover that doubles as a keyboard, down from $499.

Microsoft also cut the price on the Surface RT model with twice as much memory, to $449 from $599. That version with a cover-keyboard now costs $549, down from $699.

—Shira Ovide Digits Blog WSJ.com

Listings Multiply

The number of homes listed for sale increased by 4.3% in June to 1.9 million homes, the highest level in the past year, according to Realtor.com.

Housing inventory has steadily declined over most of the past two years. Listings typically climb heading into the spring and summer, when housing activity hits a seasonal peak. But inventories appear to be posting larger-than-usual gains in many markets as they rise from their lowest levels in at least a decade.

—Nick Timiraos Developments Blog WSJ.com

The Aggregator, edited by Cristina Lourosa-Ricardo, features news and commentary from The Wall Street Journal and other publications. Email: cristina.lourosa@wsj.com

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